Local area network

A local area network(LAN) is a computer network covering a small physical area,like a home office,or small group of buildings,such as a school or an airport.Current wired LANs are most likely to be based on Ethernet technology provide a way to create a wired LAN using existing home wires(coaxial cables,phone lines and power lines).For example ,a libary may have a wired or wireless LAN for users to interconnect local devices (e.g.,printers and servers) and to connect to the internet.On a wired LAN,PCs in the libary are typically connected by category 5 (Cat5) cable,running the IEEE 802.3 protocol through a system of interconnected devices and eventuallyconnect to the internet.The cables to the serves are typically on CAT 5e enhanced cable,which willsupport IEEE 802.3 at 1 Gbit/s.A wireless LAN may exit using a different IEEE protocol,802.11b,802.11g or possibly 802.11n. The staff computers can get to the color printer,checkout records andthe academic network and the internet. All user computer can the internet and the card catalog.